Page 123 of State of Affairs (First Family 1)

“I hope they’ll do whatever it is that calls to them, the same way Sam and I have. Right now, our thirteen-year-old son Scotty’s most pressing goal is to bring a four-legged friend into our family as soon as possible.”

“And what do you say to that, Mr. President?”

“We’re looking forward to visiting one of the local shelters before too much longer so Scotty can pick out a friend to live with us at the White House. But don’t tell him we said that.”

“Your secret is safe with me. However, as a father myself, let me warn you that you’ll be pressed to deliver on that the minute this interview goes live.”

Sam and Nick laughed.

“We’re ready for that,” Nick said.

“Your family lives locally and remained in your Capitol Hill area home during your tenure as vice president due to the proximity to Mrs. Cappuano’s disabled father. Do you have an idea of when you may move to the White House?”

“Sam and I will accompany President and Mrs. Nelson, as well as the Nelson family, home to Pierre on Air Force One on Thursday after the funeral.”

It was news to Sam that she’d be making a trip to South Dakota…

“We’ll move into the White House after that, but we aren’t exactly sure when yet. The Secret Service is eager to get us settled here, so probably sooner rather than later.”

“Mrs. Cappuano, you recently lost your father, retired Metro PD Deputy Chief Skip Holland.”

Sam was immediately on guard against wherever he was going with that line of questioning. “That’s right.”

“What do you think he’d say about his daughter and son-in-law becoming the nation’s first couple?”

“Oh, well, I think he’d be thrilled. He loved Nick very much, thought of him as a son and was delighted when he became vice president. I’m just sorry he can’t be part of it. As a proud DC native, he would’ve loved visiting us here.”

“He’s part of it,” Nick said, glancing at her with warmth in his eyes . “He’s always with us, and we both carry his words of wisdom with us as we move through the challenges we confront on a daily basis. He’s very much a touchstone to our entire family.”

Damn if he didn’t nearly move her to tears with those words.

“I want to thank you again for sitting down with us tonight for your first network interview since becoming president and first lady. I know I speak for so many when I wish you Godspeed and good luck. Your success is our success, and we’ll be rooting for you.”

“Thank you, Peter,” Nick said. “We appreciate that very much.”

“And we’re out,” the producer said.

“That was wonderful, Mr. President, Mrs. Cappuano.” Wagner shook both their hands, and Sam tried not to wince from the pain that caused her. “I’m deeply honored to be your first interview.”

“Thank you for having us,” Nick said. The minute the TV people were out of earshot, he said to Sam, “Let’s get the hell out of here. I want to see my kids.”

“I’m with you, Mr. President.”

Chapter Twenty-FIve

Because Sam had ridden home with Nick in The Beast the night before, Vernon and Jimmy drove her to the White House to pick up her car the next morning. She’d helped Nick get the kids up and ready for school and had breakfast with them before leaving the house and was trying not to think about how “off” the twins had been since she’d broken the news to them about the impending move. She planned to check in with their therapist to figure out how they could support them through this latest disruption.

As she headed for HQ, Sam put through a call to Gideon Lawson while navigating heavy Monday morning traffic.

When he answered, she said, “This is, um, Sam Cappuano.”

“Mrs. Cappuano,” Gideon said. “How lovely to hear from you.”

“I can’t help but wonder how long you’ll be saying that.”

Gideon laughed. “If I may say so, ma’am, I do love a good bit of snark. I suspect we’ll be the best of friends in no time.”

“Snark is my middle name. Sarcasm is my first name.”